Insight&CommentaryonOccupationalSafety&HealthIssues

Tag Archives: Process safety management

OSHA announced this week a shift in how it will evaluate inspections, recognizing that inspections are not all equal and that more-complex inspections deserve more weight. The complexity of an inspection affects the amount of time, manpower and other resources required by OSHA and this new tiered inspection system will reflect this complexity. Under the … Continue Reading

OSHA issues new guidance to Regional Administrators and State Plan Designees on the enforcement of the Process Safety Management (PSM) standard’s recognized and generally accepted good engineering practices (RAGAGEP) requirements. The new guidance clarifies OSHA’s positions with respect to enforcing the PSM standards that reference or imply the use of RAGAGEP. The memorandum provides the … Continue Reading

In a speech recently before the Small Business Administration’s safety and health forum in Washington, DC, Richard E. Fairfax, OSHA’s Director of Enforcement and Construction Programs, provided an update on the agency’s key enforcement initiatives. Of particular note, Mr. Fairfax stated: OSHA will be issuing another update to its Field Operations Manual (FOM) in November 2009. The … Continue Reading

OSHA has announced a new National Emphasis Program (NEP) to focus enforcement resources on process safety management (PSM) hazards in chemical facilities across the country. Chemical facilities with PSM-covered processes should review their programs now to ensure full compliance with OSHA standards. The NEP, effective July 27, 2009, is billed as a “new approach for inspecting … Continue Reading

Signaling its renewed focus on enforcement, OSHA has announced it is developing six new National Emphasis Programs (NEPs). NEPs focus OSHA’s resources on industries, hazards, and occupational injuries and illnesses that need additional targeted enforcement, in the Agency’s view. OSHA’s Director of Enforcement Programs revealed the following industry-specific NEPs are in development: Chemical plants – … Continue Reading

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